Clothes-fbahee



UNITED STATES PATENT GFFICE.

HENRY A. NUTTING, OF SOUTH AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS.

CLOTHES-ERAME.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 23,941, dated May 10, 1859'.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY A. NU'rrING, of South Amherst, in the county of Hampshire and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clothes-Frames; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l represents a perspective view of my clothes frame, when unfolded and spread out. Fig. 2 represents the frame (the cords being removed) as it appears when folded up. Figs. 3, 4t and 5, represent details of the clothes frame which will be specially referred to.

Similar letters of reference where they occur in the separate figures denote like parts of the contrivance in all the drawings.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the same with reference to the drawings.

A, B, represent two sliding hubs or heads, made of wood or metal, or parts of each, with openings through them, so that when unrestrained they may freely slide on a rod or stem C. To the upper one (A) of these hubs or heads are pivoted at a a, three, four, or more arms D, which swing out in an oblique or tangential line to said hub, as shown in Fig. 1. And to the lower head or hub B, are pivoted a corresponding number of arms E, at the points c, c, with this difference, viz: that while the arms D, are pivoted at their upper ends, those E, are pivoted at or near their center, and the latter (E) incline in an opposite direction to those D, when spread out, as clearly shown in the drawing Fig. l, and form the legs or supports of the clothes'frame, as well as braces to the upper arms D, by being connected to them at e, by a joint on which they can move, when the frame is to be folded up. By this construction, it will be perceived that, the weight of the frame itself, as well as the clothes uponit, tend to spread the supports, and give it a firmer hold on the ground, licor, or wherever it may be placed and prevents it from being tumbled over, or upset by the wind or other cause.

There is a screw thread cut on the top of the stem or rod C, on which a thumb nut f, is run, to hold the arms rigidlyA to their places, or against closing, after the clothes frame is spread out, as will be hereafter explained. rThrough the lower hub B, there is formed a slot 2f, which extends clear through the hub (Fig. 4) and on the underside of said hub, there is another slot n, cut in, a short distance, at right angles to the other slot z', which receives a pin o, fixed in the stem or rod C (see Figs. 3, Fig. representing the lower hub turned upside down to show both slots).

m, is the cord or line which passes through the arms D, on which the clothes are to be hung, and receding as they do from the base toward the apex of the pyramid, make a very extended line over which the pieces of clothes &c.,may hang without touching each other.

1When it is desirable to close up the frame, the thumb screw f is loosened up until the pin 0 in the stem d, will come out of the slot or recess fn.; the rod is then turned half around until the pin comes opposite the slot c', and passing through said slot, the hub B, can slide down upon the stem c, which draws all the arms down parallel, or nearly so, with the rod, as seen in Fig. 2, in

which position it occupies but little space.,

To spread out the frame this operation is reversed.

Having thus fully described the nature and object of my invention, what I claim therein as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is,

A clothes frame, composed substantially of the rod or stem C, the two hubs A, B, and the two sets of arms D, E, combined, arranged, and operating together, substantially in the manner herein described, and represented.

HENRY A. NUTTING. Witnesses:

HENRY B. PRINCE, A. S. WARD. 

